Thankfully, he had drunk a mind restoration potion of the highest quality earlier... one he had purchased from Airmid's shop at no small cost.
Without it, the sheer number of spells he had fired off during the battle against Revis would have pushed him straight into Mind Zero.
Even with the potion's effects still lingering, his head throbbed faintly, and his limbs felt heavier than they should have.
He watched quietly as Riveria stepped forward, lifting her staff.
A gentle, luminous glow spread from the tip as she began chanting, the cadence of her voice smooth and practiced.
The light gathered, then flowed toward Ais, wrapping around her like a warm embrace.
"Luna Aldis."
As Riveria spoke the spell's name, the injuries covering Ais' body began to fade, bruises lightening, cuts closing as if time itself was being carefully reversed.
Ais didn't wake up right away, but her breathing evened out, her expression relaxing for the first time since the battle began.
Only then did the tension finally release.
The danger had passed.
"Now that's what you call a perfect victory, right?"
Lulune let out a nervous chuckle as she spoke, her shoulders finally dropping after being held tense for so long.
Judas glanced at her briefly, then shifted his gaze past her, toward the center of the crater where Revis lay motionless amid scorched earth and shattered stone.
He opened his mouth, his tone calm but serious.
"She's still alive, by the way."
His words made Lulune snap her head around, eyes widening in shock, while Riveria merely raised a brow, her expression composed but attentive.
"What do you mean still alive? That scary red-haired woman!?"
Lulune shouted with a shaky voice, pointing frantically toward the center of the massive crater.
"Well... barely," Judas replied, scratching his cheek.
"She's pretty much on the brink of death, but she'll live... I think?"
He didn't elaborate further. Instead, Judas extended his arm, fingers curling slightly as invisible force answered his will.
The air trembled as his telekinesis lifted Revis' battered body... or what remained of it... from the crater, dragging her across the ground and stopping a short distance in front of them.
Lulune swallowed hard.
Without wasting time, Judas began layering spells over Revis' body... sealing magic, restraint magic, and suppression magic overlapping one another until even the faintest trace of movement was impossible.
Even if she woke up... she wouldn't be going anywhere.
"I kept her alive because she has information we might need," Judas continued calmly as he lowered her to the ground and released his telekinesis.
"Things like the origin of those plant monsters... Violas, as she called them."
Riveria nodded in approval, a faint smile touching her lips.
"Good judgment. If Finn were here, he'd probably pat you on the back."
It would have been acceptable if Judas had simply killed the enemy on the spot... but capturing her was the better outcome.
Dead enemies stopped being threats, but living ones could still speak... and right now, information was far more valuable than satisfaction.
Judas could already tell that something was deeply off about the recent events in Orario.
First, the plant monster incident from a few days ago... and now this.
There was definitely something shady moving in the shadows.
And Revis was almost certainly one of the key figures involved.
If there was anyone who held the answers they needed, it was her.
"Thanks. And speaking of which..."
Judas said, his gaze drifting toward Lulune.
She stiffened immediately.
"There are quite a few questions we need you to answer. Please cooperate."
Lulune gulped.
Any thought of resistance vanished the moment she remembered what she had just witnessed earlier.
'Not only that...'
She stole a glance behind her.
Riveria, also known as Nine Hell was standing right there.
"I'll talk."
Lulune said with a resigned sigh.
"Before that."
Riveria interjected, adjusting Ais on her back.
"Let's return to Rivira and find an inn. I don't want Ais lying on the dirt any longer."
"That's fine."
Judas nodded.
After several minutes of walking, they reached the town's entrance, where Bors greeted them with a tired but relieved expression.
"Oh, you're finally back."
"Bors, is there any inn still standing?"
Riveria said,.
"An inn?"
Bors echoed, puzzled... until his eyes landed on Ais' unconscious form.
"Even the Sword Princess ended up like that... geez, what kind of monster did you guys fight?"
He shook his head and pointed down one of the streets.
"You're in luck. George's inn should still be intact."
They thanked him and made their way there, settling in quickly.
Once Riveria had carefully laid Ais down on a bed and ensured she was stable, the atmosphere in the room shifted.
The tension returned.
"Tell us everything."
Riveria said.
Lulune did.
Judas and Riveria asked question after question, and to her credit, Lulune answered honestly... her voice hesitant at first, then steadier as she realized lying would only make things worse.
As she spoke, Judas organized the information in his mind.
'A member of Hermes Familia...'
'I knew she felt familiar.'
It was not like he remembered every minor character from the anime.
'The one who sought her for the mission.'
'A mysterious client in full black robes... with a completely indistinguishable voice.'
'...Why does that sound like Fels?'
Judas crossed his arms, eyes narrowing slightly.
'I should ask that guy about this the next time I see him.'
In a dark room somewhere in Orario, Fels suddenly felt a chill run down his spine and sneezed.
Achoo.
"Is someone talking about me...?"
Fels muttered absentmindedly as he wiped his nose... then froze.
"...Wait a minute. I'm a skeleton. How did I just sneeze?"
It was a mystery that would probably never be solved.
...
"Mmmn."
A groan escaped Ais' lips as her eyes fluttered open.
At first, her vision was nothing more than a blur.
Slowly, clarity returned, the blur sharpening little by little until the image finally settled.
The first thing she saw was an unfamiliar wooden ceiling.
'...Where am I?'
The thought surfaced as her head cleared. Ais pushed herself up, blinking once more as she sat upright.
She was lying in an unfamiliar bed.
Clean sheets.
A faint scent of wood and cloth lingering in the air. For a brief moment, everything felt quiet... too quiet.
As she pulled the blanket away and her bare feet touched the floor, something clicked in her mind.
Memories came rushing back in a violent flood.
Crimson hair.
A blade clashing against hers.
'Aria.'
But the one thing she remembered strongly was the name that came out of the enemy's mouth.
'Who is she? How does she know?'
Ais grasped her head as a dull ache throbbed behind her eyes, flashes of the battle replaying themselves in painful clarity.
Every exchange, every strike... right up to the moment her consciousness had slipped away.
"Judas!"
The name tore from her throat as she sprang to her feet, panic flooding her expression.
From their fight alone, she knew... Revis wasn't an ordinary enemy.
The woman possessed the power of a high-grade Level 6.
The kind of enemy that even Finn and the others would treat with caution.
An enemy Judas shouldn't have been able to face under normal circumstances.
Her hand moved on instinct toward her hip, where she usually kept her sword... only to grasp nothing but air.
"Huh?"
The sound left her mouth before she even realized it.
Ais' eyes darted around the room, sharp and alert despite the lingering confusion.
It took only a moment before she spotted it... her sword, resting quietly against the bedside, as if it had never left her side.
Without hesitation, she seized the hilt and rushed for the door, throwing it open.
"Ais? You're finally awake."
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